Role of the High School Principal

Webster (1994) conducted a three-year study of high school principals, which examined the various roles they play in today's high schools. The study involved visits and interviews in more than 150 high schools in 23 states and 7 countries. The study encompassed each geographic area of the United States (New England, Mid-Atlantic, Southeast, Southwest, Midwest, Rocky Mountains, Far West, and Alaska) as well as schools in Indonesia, the Philippines, Taiwan, Australia, Brazil, Canada, and Scotland. The average school size was 1,120 students; some were racially mixed, others were close to 100 percent minority or 100 percent white. The median age of principals interviewed was 43, of which 27 percent were women and 18 percent held doctorate degrees. The most typical college majors of these principals were social studies education and English education.

An interesting observation of the study was that Webster (1994) was unable to discern a "model" of the high school principal. Most managed their schools based on their past experience as teacher or

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otivator, and supporter of teachers. Fostering a supportive environment empowers and enables teachers to do their best work: "Effective principal behavior leads teachers to feel comfortable with themselves [and] expands the limits of their teaching efforts . . . " (Raisch and Rogus, 1995, p. 15). Although acknowledging that teachers should have a greater share in the decision making process, most principals point to their status as the final authority in their rationale for limiting teacher involvement. Principals are comfortable in their roles as leaders, but few identify or maintain a distinct leadership strategy: "Their styles could best be referred to as crisis management, rather than a coherent set of interrelated experiences" (Webster, 1994, p. 50). The principal's role as manager of students is considered to be the most important function of the job and the source of the greatest job satisfaction. Given the violent nature of urban high school campuses, many principals expressed the goal of making the school grounds a "safe haven" for students. The largest percentage of principals reported that the most frustrating aspect of their jobs related to apathetic teachers and parents who fostered environments that contribut
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Approximate Word count = 1596
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page)

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